Automatic regulator for windmills.



PATENTED APR. 25, 1905.

0. F. KNOTHE. AUTOMATIC REGULATOR FOR WINDMILLS.

APPLICATION FILED 811F128, 1904.

W/Ig VESSES: JNVENTOR. /I .M M yfl I NITED STATES Patented April 25, 1905.

CHARLES F. KNOTHE, OF FORT \VAYNE, INDIANA.

AUTOMATIC REGULATOR FOR WINDMILLS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 787,924, dated April 25, 1905.

Application filed September 28, 1904. Serial No. 226,258.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES F. KNo'run, a citizen of the United States, residing at Fort \Vayne, in the county of Allen, in the State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Regulators for \Vindmills; and 1 do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in automatic regulators for windmills.

The object of my present invention is to provide a cheap, simple, eiiicient, and reliable mechanism for automatically throwing windmills out of gear when the storage watertank is full and automatically permitting the mill to return to action when the level of the water in the tank has receded to a predetermined limit.

Another ohject is to provide a mechanism of this class whose operative parts are at all times inclosed, whereby their efficient operation is beyond interference from the elements.

My invention consists of an upright casing open only at its lower end, a series of vertically-movable bars and a series of actuating and retaining pawls in cooperative relation therewith, all arranged in the casing, a flexible connection between the said bars and the wimlmill-riulder, an operative connection between the pump-rod and my device, and a counterbalanced lever connection with a proper float in the storage-tank.

Similar reference-numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views,in which Figure l is a side elevation of my improvement in operative connection with the pumprod with the detachable cover of the casing removed and a portion of the contained bars broken away in part. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same on the line a w of Fig. 1 with the actuating and retaining pawls omitted. Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective detail of one of the actuating-pawls, showing its relation to the rack-bar and the adjacent cooperative shifting bar. Fig. i is an enlarged perspective detail of one of the retainingpawls in its holding engagement with the shifting bar.

The casing 1, of proper dimensions, has a lateral enlargement 2 upon its inner or rear face, has a detachable cover 3 and a rearwardly-projecting arm 4, in whose free end is pivotally fulcrumed the lever 5, whose rear end has a longitudinal slot 6 and is pivotally connected with the pump-rod 7 by means of the pin 8 fixed therein. The other end of the lever 5 is pivotally connected with my device in the manner about to be described.

At a suitable point on the arm 4 is pivotally fulcrumed a counterlmlancing float-lever 9, whose forward end is provided with an adjustable weight 10 and whose rear end is connected to a proper float (not shown) by means of a wire 11 or other proper connection.

The casing l is rigidly fixed in any proper manner to the windmill-tower, (not shown,) preferably at or near the middle of its height.

The casing 1 is provided upon its interior near its ends with the opposite lateral lugs or guides 12 and 13, between which are slidably arranged a series of vertical bars of varying length in parallel relation and having their lower ends protruding from the easing and described as follows:

Adjacent to the rear face of the containingcasing l is arranged a driving-bar H, whose lower end is pivotally connected to the adjacent end of the bar 5 by means of a pin 15. This bar ll has upon one edge thereof a lateral lug lei, upon the front face of which are pivotally mounted one or more, preferably two, actuating-pawls 15. The bar l-l has a limited vertical reciprocation under the influence of the pump-rod through the medium of the lever 5.

Adjacent to the inner face of the bar 14: is arranged the rack-bar 18 in cooperative relation with the actuating-pawls l5 and the retaining-pawls 16, which are also preferably two in number and are pivotally mounted on the vertical lug 17, whose lower end has :1 lateral projection l9, which extends slightly beyond the width of the rack-bar 18. On this projection 19 is pivotally mounted the holding-pawl 20, adapted for an engagement with the notch 21 on the adjacent edge of the ad jacent shifting bar 22 about to be described. This rack bar 18 has upon its upper end an offset or recess 23, in which the actuatingpawls 15 can play idly when the rack-bar is at its lowest limit. On the lower end of the rackbar is fixed a rearwardly-projecting arm or lug 24, to the outer end of which is fixed one end of a wire 25, whose other end is connected to the rudder-vane of the mill in a well-understood manner and by means of which the rack-bar is elevated as the mill goes into action.

The shifting bar 22 is pivotally connected at its upper end with the upper end of the adjacent operating-bar 26 by means of a pin 27, Fig. 1. This operating-bar has upon its front edge a shoulder 28, whose function is to disengage the pawl 20 from its holding engagement with the notch 21 of the shifting bar 22 upon its descent in the manner hereinafter described.

The shifting bar 22 has upon its rear face a pair of shoulders 31, adapted in the upward movement of the bar to force it forward by contact with the adjacent guides 12 and 18, thereby releasing the pawls 15 and 16 from their engagement with the rack-bar, these pawls having a width substantially equal to that of the combined widths of the shifting bar and rack-bar, as shown in Fig. 3.

The operating-bar 26 has at its lower end a lateral fixed pin 29, which is loosely arranged in the longitudinal slot 30 in the float-lever 9, whereby the operatingbar is elevated by means of the float-lever when the water is low in the tank.

The operation of my invention thus described is obvious and, briefly stated, is as follows: As the lever 5 is connected at one end with the pump-rod and at the other end with the driving-bar 14, it follows that when the mill is in action the driving-bar will have a slight Vertical reciprocation, such reciprocation being but slight, since the adjacent end of the actuating-lever 5 is much nearer its fulcrum than is the other end thereof. Assuming the tank to be full and the float elevated, the float-lever 9 will be in substantially the position shown in Fig. l. The lowering of the water in the tank gradually elevates the operating-bar 26, carrying with it the shifting bar 22, thereby disengaging the pawls 15 and 16 from the rack 18 by contact with the shoulders 31, as before explained. When the rack-bar 18 is at its upper limit, to which it is elevated by means of the arm 24 and the wire 25 as the mill is swung into the wind, the pawls 15 and 16 will be in their engagement therewith, as shown. The rack-bar is gradually forced downward to its lowest limit by the pawls 15, which are carried with the driving-bar in its vertical reciprocation, the pawls 16 retaining the rack-bar at each downward movement thereof. This movement of the rack-bar is continued until it reaches its lowest limit. When the operatingbar 26 is lowered by the rise of the water in the tank, it will disengage the pawl 20 from its holding engagement with the notch 21 on the bar 22, thereby permitting it to descend suddenly on account of the play of the pin 27 in the slot 32 by gravity, thus allowing the pawls 15 and 16 to promptly and automatically engage the rack-bar 18 to prevent any slipping or chipping ofl of the rack-teeth.

It is thus seen that when the water in the tank is low my improvement will automatically permit the mill to come into action and when the tank is full my invention will automatically put the mill out of action, and the principal operative parts are inclosed in a protecting-sheath.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is" 1. An automatic regulator for windmills consisting of a vertically-reciprocating driving-bar pivotally connected at its lower end with the pump-rod; a vertical rack-bar in cooperative relation with the driving-bar, and having its lower end connected to the rudder of the mill; a pawl or pawls pivotally mounted on the driving-bar and adapted for an actuating engagement with the rack-bar; a pawl or pawls in fixed relationto the rack-bar and adapted for a holding engagement therewith against any upward movement thereof; a vertical shifting bar adapted in its upward movement to release the rack-bar; means for temporarily securing the shifting bar in its elevated position; and a vertically-movable operating-bar pivotally connected with the float, and adapted to elevate the shifting bar, and also to release the same as described.

2. In an automatic windmill-regulator a vertically-movable driving-bar having a pivotal connection with the pump-rod; a vertical rackbar in cooperative relation with the drivingbar; means for elevating the rack-bar under the conditions described; means for actuating the rack-bar downwardly in unison with the movements of the driving-bar; means for securing the rack-bar against a return movement during its descent; a vertical shifting bar adapted to release the rack-bar from its retaining and actuating means; a verticallymovable operating-bar adapted to actuate the shifting bar; means for actuating the operating bar; and a containing-casing for the said bars.

3. The combination in an automatic regulator for windmills, a driving-bar having a vertical reciprocation by means of a pivotal connection with the pump-rod; a verticallymovable rack-bar; a flexible connection between the rack-bar and the rudder; an actuating connection between the rack-bar and the driving-bar for moving the rack-bar to its lowest limit; means for securing the rack-bar during its descent against an upward moveinent; a vertical shifting bar to release the rack-bar from its retaining and actuating engagement; a vertically-movable operating-bar adapted to actuatethe shifting bar in both 5 directions; and means for connecting the operating-bar With the actuating-float.

at. In an automatic regulator for Windmills,

a closed casing open only at its lower end, and

containing the regulatoractuating means;

0 and means for operatively connecting the said actuating means with the regulator at its lower end.

Signed by me at Fort Wayne, Allen county, State of Indiana, this 24th day of September, A. 1). 190i. 7

CHARLES F. KNOTHE.

\Vitnesses:

ADELIA L. LUMBARD, LULU E. BULMAIIN. 

